World News and Trends: Understanding the Bible in America
According to an article in The Washington Times, "most Americans believe the Bible is more factual than newspapers, but find their daily newspaper easier to read."
A recent survey suggests that many Americans would be more willing to study the Bible if it could be more palatably packaged and easier to understand.
Many readers found that the most difficult part of the Bible to read and understand is the creation account in Genesis. Their confidence in its narrative and teaching is not backed by personal knowledge and understanding.
The United Church of God has always been concerned about the growing gap between general belief in the Bible and real knowledge and understanding of its contents. That is why we have prepared and published two free booklets that will help make God's Word more plain and user-friendly. Please request Is the Bible True?, which addresses and explains the creation account, and How to Understand the Bible. (Source: The Washington Times.)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: March - April 2001
Course Content
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
Melvin Rhodes
Melvin Rhodes is a member of the United Church of God congregation in Lansing, Michigan.
